Smith was having the best season of his career before an injury knocked him out of the lineup in November. Colin Kaepernick took over and led San Francisco to the Super Bowl. With a weak draft class and few other potential starters available, Smith was one of the top targets for teams looking to upgrade at quarterback.

CBS Sports' Jason La Canfora reported Sunday that the 49ers had a deal for Smith "effectively completed." But the other team was not known at the time.

Most of the speculation pointed to the Chiefs, who struggled at quarterback last season. Matt Cassel and Brady Quinn split the job and combined to throw 20 interceptions and only eight touchdowns. The Chiefs hired former Eagles coach Andy Reid in the offseason, and improving at quarterback was expected to be among his top priorities.

Kansas City owns the top pick in the upcoming NFL Draft, normally a spot where teams find a quarterback. But this year's class -- headlined by prospects like West Virginia's Geno Smith and USC's Matt Barkley -- lacks a clear answer at the position so early in the first round.

Smith provides a solid, experienced solution for the Chiefs. He has started 75 games in his career and led San Francisco to the NFC Championship in 2012. In nine starts last season, Smith completed 70.2 percent of his passes and threw 13 touchdowns. The game before his injury, on Monday Night Football against Arizona, he completed 18 of 19 passes for 232 yards and three touchdowns.